Chilean Fresh Fruit Association
Plums are great raw or cooked into pastries or puddings.

Plums are a sweet-tart
treat, and a good buy

Go plum crazy with best-buy black plums for 79 cents a pound at IGH (Independent Grocers of Hawaii) stores; extra-large mix-and-match red, black and green plums for 89 cents at Foodland; and black plums for 99 cents at Safeway. Also, fresh sugar plums cost $1.19 a pound at Safeway and $1.29 at Foodland, while Italian prune plums are $1.38 at Daiei.

Other stone-fruit bargains include O'Henry peaches for 67 cents a pound at Safeway and large peaches for $1.29 at Foodland, while nectarines are 59 cents at Star Markets and 99 cents at Times Super Markets.

Star also features Hawaiian ama ebi at $12.99 for a 2.2-pound box ($5.91 per pound). Stir-fry these deep-sea shrimp with fresh Chinese peas, available at Daiei for $1.58 a pound through Saturday.

Parlay plums into plum jams, plum preserves and pureed plum butter. Plums make exceptional crumbles, cobblers, puddings, pies, tarts and cake.

Cook up a plain plum sauce, made like applesauce and spiced with cinnamon, to serve with meats and pates. Turn out Chinese plum sauce by simmering pureed plums with chiles, fresh ginger and Chinese five-spice. The traditional Chinese use is for dipping, but you can try it on grilled or baked chicken, ribs or lamb.

An easy tart of prune plums calls for a 9-inch pan or ring lined in pate brisee (rich, flaky dough) and filled with 2 pounds of halved, pitted plums arranged in a tight pattern, sprinkled with 3/4 cup brown sugar and 1 teaspoon cinnamon before being dotted with 1-1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter. The pie goes into a 450-degree oven for 10 minutes, then bakes at 350 degrees for a further 25 to 30 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature with dollops of sour cream.

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From staff and wire reports